Reps of investigate NNPC’s financial records

The House of Representatives has resolved to investigate the financial records and actual production capacity of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) from January 2018 to date.

This investigation is aimed at ascertaining the volume of sales of crude oil of the NNPC.

The House also resolved to investigate the yearly production output to determine the impropriety or otherwise of the claim of 2 million barrels of crude oil per day by the corporation.

The motion for investigation was moved by Representative Ossai Nicholas (Delta PDP) citing NNPC’s current under-remittances to Federation Account.

He pointed out that this was the reason why the Federation Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC) meeting for the month of June, did not hold.

There is an “urgent need” to investigate the “under-remittances” of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Ossai said.

Ossai while moving the motion, during plenary on Tuesday, added that the N100 billion ($277 million, €236 million) shortfall is not connected to the oil price, which has been high in recent months and is “likely as a result of some individuals not doing what they are supposed to.”

“The people who have worked have not received their salaries,” Ossai said, adding that the NNPC has “always given one reason or the other that are not cogent”.

The motion from the House of Representatives comes after Finance Minister Kemi Adeosun said on June 28 that remittances from the NNPC were “unacceptable”.

Adeosun said that oil proceeds have become an issue and that the government was investigating the NNPC’s claims that the funds were lower than expected because of the deduction of fuel subsidies.